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Running back Le'Veon Bell admitted to smoking marijuana before NFL games. He made the startling revelation in his recent appearance on “Steel Here,” a podcast devoted to everything Pittsburgh Steelers.
The three-time Pro Bowler said:
“Looking back on this, that's what I did. When I was playing football, I smoked, bro. Even before the games, I'd smoke, and I'd go out there and run for 150, two [touchdowns]."
Bell played for the Steelers from 2013 to 2017. The team offered him the franchise tag for the 2018 season, but he declined to sign it. He did not report to the Steelers before the deadline for signing the contract, which made him ineligible for the 2018 season.
Meanwhile, Le'Veon Bell’s admission brought out these comments from the NFL Reddit community.
Aside from his admission, Bell also wondered about the outcome of signing a contract extension with the Steelers. That prospect led Steelers fans to ponder what might have been with Antonio Brown, another former Steelers star.
The highs and lows of Le'Veon Bell’s NFL career
Le'Veon Bell was one of the best running backs in the NFL from 2014 to 2017. He made three Pro Bowl squads and became a two-time Second Team All-Pro selection. He was also First Team All-Pro in 2014.
The former Michigan State standout also had three 1,000-yard seasons in those four years. In his final playing year with the Steelers (2017), he led the league with 321 carries. He converted those attempts to 1,291 rushing yards and nine touchdowns.
But after his holdout in 2018, he signed a four-year, $52.5 million contract with the New York Jets during the 2019 offseason. He didn’t last long in The Big Apple after the Jets released him two games into the 2020 season.
He finished the year with the Kansas City Chiefs, wherein he tallied 254 rushing yards and two touchdowns. In 2021, the Baltimore Ravens signed Bell to their practice squad before elevating him to their main roster.
Unfortunately, he lasted only five games in Baltimore. He finished the 2021 season playing three games for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
He hasn't played in the NFL since 2021, giving him career numbers of 6,554 yards and 42 rushing touchdowns. Bell also had nine receiving touchdowns out of 3,289 yards.
Should Bell have been penalized under the NFL’s substance abuse policy?
As part of their recreational drug policy, the NFL doesn’t sanction players who abuse marijuana and alcohol. Therefore, Le'Veon Bell is off the hook if he were to do the same pre-game ritual now.
However, they take cases of steroids, anabolics, and exogenous testosterone usage seriously. The league considers them performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) that can give the user a particular advantage. A player proven guilty for the first time may face a four-to-six-game suspension.
Masking the use of PEDs will lead to a two-game suspension while manipulating drug tests is a six-game suspension. A second violation is worth a ten-game ban, while a third is at least a one-season suspension.
